As the election nears, those who rallied away from the Democratic Party and cheered the negativism of the Trump campaign will again be disappointed. Just saying “no,” turns out to be not enough. The Brexit “no” offers a poignant but sad reminder that just saying no to economic and political disenfranchisement is not enough for meaningful change. It will be the same after the Trump defeat and the shearing of Republican majorities in both the Senate and the House.
As the WSJ pointed out this morning, (James Freeman: “Doesn’t Clinton Embarrass Democrats”) a “no” vote can topple a government (viz. Brexit ), but creating a solid program that creates inclusiveness and reform of Big Government is not the same thing. British voters turned against the prevailing support of EU by Tories who had supported Britain’s EU membership albeit wishing to allow for “local options.” Working class naysayers identified the Brussels Bureaucrats as the source of the evident loss of their political and economic status. Yet, no program of inclusion or reform of British government has appeared. Surprise Hardly! “No” doesn’t constitute viable reform. The pertinent question going forward in the UK will be, “Where will those disappointed in the consequences of their revolt now head” A similar question will arise after the Clinton election. Where will the disappointed Trumpeans go History suggests extremism could be the next step.
At a deeper level, Freeman asks several profound questions about the ascendance of “Crooked Hillary.” The recent Wikileaks disclosures pretty much close the case on Clintonian corruption and cronyism while our free press hardly comments. When your children ask, “How can I become a millionaire, tell them “become a successful politician.” All too often, Big Government functions on cronyism and corruption, and few politicians ever pay the price for crossing the line. The acceptance by our “free” public information system that legislators and administrators can be bought and paid for is the ultimate cynicism in a democratic state.
Freeman raises a painful reminder of the relevance of our modern press in current politics: why do both print and media journalists scourge Trump on his nativism but leaves the Clinton trespass into conflict of interest politics untouched Surely the facts are not in dispute The Clinton mob’s emails aren’t even denied anymore, merely ignored. That amounts to a blatant indictment of modern-day muckrakers that affirms corruption and modern American government is joined at the hip. Dog bites man is not newsworthy. Corruption is an everyday affair.
When an American business firm is charged with polluting the environment or raising the prices of pharmaceuticals (enhanced by Government paying the bill), the press corps is relentless in excoriating the overstep while it appears perfectly legitimate to use a public office to seek donations for the Clinton Foundation and those who derive economic benefit from running it. The corruption of the press is the ultimate undermining of a democratic republic.
The importance of a vital and free press to our Founders is embedded in the ordering of the Bill of Rights. The First Amendment anointed a vital free press as the key monitor on the behavior of our public officeholders. Our current press is virtually silent on the Clinton excursions. Can we have limited Government and probative public service without an objective press that digs out critical information and brings it to the public’s attention
We have forgotten the ultimate line of the Gettysburg Address: “…that government of the people, by the people, for the people, shall not perish from the earth.” R.I.P. is the ultimate “No,” isn’t it